The Ignored Granddaughter of a Murim Family - Chapter 197

—————
This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
—————

Chapter 197
Everyone was intensely interested in the martial contest between Namgung Ryu-cheong and Yalyu.
No one could say how the conversation had drifted to this topic, but a Namgung Warrior set down his cup and spoke.
“Hmph, who does our young master think he is!”
“Still, isn’t he a disciple of Cheonsan Yeom-je? The fact that he took on a disciple when he’d never had one before suggests the boy has genuine talent.”
“His aura is certainly not light. He won’t fall so easily to the Namgung heir.”
It was evening, four days after my father had departed.
The First Floor Dining Hall was filled with martial artists gathered in small groups, eating and drinking together.
“Miss!”
Someone called out to me as I passed through the dining hall on my way up the staircase. When I turned, it was the Namgung Warrior who had been cheering for Namgung Ryu-cheong—someone quite familiar to me, as he’d accompanied me to search for Man Shin-ui before.
“Ah, I suppose I should call you Miss now. The old title just slips out. Where are you headed? Have you had dinner?”
“I’m going upstairs to eat.”
He tilted his head playfully and asked with a teasing tone.
“Which side are you rooting for, Miss?”
His tone suggested he assumed I’d overheard their conversation.
“I’m not sure.”
A Baek Family Warrior from across the way spoke up reproachfully.
“Don’t ask our young lady such difficult questions.”
“What’s so difficult about it? Obviously our young master! Right?”
“Well, seeing Warrior Ha’s expression, I feel like I should support Yalyu instead….”
“No, no, that won’t do!”
“Then I’ll just follow the young lady’s opinion….”
“You too?”
At the sight of the bandit-like man’s woeful expression, everyone burst into laughter.
It was completely different from the heavy atmosphere when Uncle Namgung Wan had been bedridden days ago.
I had just reached the third-floor landing.
“You’re rooting for Yalyu?”
Namgung Ryu-cheong was leaning against the railing.
“You heard?”
“Of course I heard, with you talking so loudly.”
“If you heard everything, you know it was just a joke.”
“…Hmph.”
As he turned sharply, the hem of his dark blue robe fluttered. Namgung Ryu-cheong walked back to his guest room without a backward glance.
“What? Were you waiting to eat together? Where are you going?”
“Eat alone.”
I hurried after him, but Namgung Ryu-cheong’s guest room door closed right before my eyes.
I shouted from outside the door.
“Ryu-cheong, Ryu-cheong! Are you upset? Huh?”
From inside came a voice that seemed deliberately restrained.
“Don’t shout. Who said I was upset?”
“Really? Then should I come in?”
“No.”
“Why!”
“…I’m going to cultivate my energy.”
I nearly burst into laughter and bit the inside of my cheek hard to suppress it. Then I spoke in a drawling tone.
“Ah~ yes~ that’s right~ you should work hard~.”
My tone carried the implication that of course he had to work hard if he wanted to win. There was no way Namgung Ryu-cheong could miss that.
The moment the guest room door flew open, I laughed brightly and fled to my chamber.
After dinner, I too cultivated my energy.
Energy cultivation existed in a state half-suspended between dream and wakefulness. Like in dreams, forgotten memories surfaced and then sank again in endless cycles.
When I opened my eyes after finishing my cultivation, the night had grown deep. The First Floor Dining Hall, which had been bustling until I began, was now silent as if it had never been otherwise.
‘I didn’t recover any significant memories this time….’
I opened the window and gazed at the sky. Thick clouds obscured the heavens, making it impossible to locate the moon and difficult to gauge the time. Instead of the moon hidden behind clouds, I could see shadows moving in the dark Inner Courtyard of the inn.
A figure that had been moving for some time suddenly stopped.
“Baek Li-yeon, why aren’t you sleeping?”
Transmitting one’s voice becomes harder the greater the distance.
Moreover, on such a dark night without moonlight, he shouldn’t have been able to see me clearly, yet his voice reached me as if he were speaking from right beside me.
Slightly impressed, I answered plainly, as if speaking to someone at my side.
I couldn’t transmit my voice that far, but I had faith that Namgung Wan would be able to hear me regardless.
“You noticed?”
“How could I pretend not to see when you stare so openly?”
“Ha, my apologies. I became worried without realizing it.”
After my words, Namgung Wan fell silent. I waited for a moment, then tried to close the window and withdraw.
In truth, the very act of cultivating at this hour meant he didn’t want others to witness his training. It was also discourteous to secretly observe someone’s personal cultivation.
Then Namgung Wan spoke.
“Come down.”
“Pardon?”
“Bring your sword.”
I was about to leave with my sword in hand, still confused, when—
Namgung Wan spoke in a tone as if asking what I was doing.
“Where are you going?”
“Pardon? I’m going downstairs….”
“Why not use the window?”
“….”
I grasped the window frame and leaped from the third floor of the inn.
With a light tap, I landed on the ground.
I brushed the dust from my clothes and spoke.
“Father would have scolded me if he’d seen that.”
“It seems you’ve already been reprimanded before?”
“Yes. He said why do I use the window when there’s a door….”
“I’ve heard enough of that nagging myself.”
I burst out laughing at Namgung Wan’s exasperated expression.
“Then I’ll begin.”
“Pardon?”
What did he mean by that?
The moment confusion seized me, I saw a blade thrust toward me. Startled, I twisted my body. The sword narrowly missed me, slicing through empty air.
After that, a barrage of sword strikes followed relentlessly.
I barely managed to evade Namgung Wan’s attacks.
“That’s unfair, ah, huff! Unfair! How could you, take the initiative when you’re the one teaching me…!”
“That’s precisely why I warned you beforehand and didn’t attack immediately. Judging by how much you’re still talking, it seems I’ve been far too lenient.”
True to his word, the attacks that followed were so ferocious I couldn’t afford to open my mouth. By the time I barely managed to draw my own blade, my clothes were already torn to shreds.
Clang!
I blocked Namgung Wan’s strike, my eyes widening.
“Why is the sound so quiet?”
“Ah… yes.”
The Namgung Clan’s swordsmanship was characterized by thunderous sounds.
“Do you want to wake everyone at this hour? I can control that much. Besides, I don’t need to exert my full strength just to spar with you.”
I bit my lip hard. His attitude was infuriating, but there was little I could do about it.
“Your footwork seems light, but why… hmm, your body can’t keep pace with your eyes. Why can’t you move faster?”
I even took several hits from the flat of his blade.
“That’s right. Don’t rely solely on your eyes—cultivate your senses. Move more lightly.”
And as our blades clashed repeatedly, the noise that had been gradually increasing eventually reached an unbearable level.
Boom!
Namgung Wan stepped back.
“We’ll stop here.”
“Ha, ha… ha… ha…”
I collapsed to the ground, gasping heavily, leaning my sword against the floor to support myself.
“That final strike wasn’t bad.”
“Thank you for your instruction.”
Though it had started abruptly, sparring under Namgung Wan’s guidance was a precious experience. It felt entirely different from training with my father.
Training with my father had become routine, and since the Baek Family’s martial arts focused on defensive counterattacks, it often felt like a battle of wits.
In contrast, Namgung Wan’s swordsmanship had an overwhelming, aggressive quality. When I tried to think and counterattack, he would crush me with raw power; when I attempted to evade and seize an opening, refined attacks came at me too quickly to escape.
“What do you think?”
“Ha… ha… huff. Wh, what?”
“About my arm.”
I frowned as if questioning why he would ask such a thing.
“It seems, seems very, very good, I think.”
Namgung Wan sheathed his sword and, catching his breath, extended his right hand to examine it.
“Does it look that way?”
I asked back in surprise.
“Isn’t it?”
“Hmm, it still feels a bit sluggish. That’s probably because the nerve died once.”
So this is what sluggish feels like.
Namgung Wan stroked his chin as he spoke.
“At this rate, I think it’s safe to have Ryu-cheong and Yalyu spar.”
I, who had been pouting, suddenly lifted my head.
“Your senses have recovered quite a bit from sparring with me.”
During sparring, no liability was assumed even if someone was injured. The fact that this condition was fundamentally in place meant that many people got hurt during sparring.
It was only natural. Since they fought with real blades, even a small mistake could result in unexpected serious injuries. In the worst case, it could cost someone their life. That’s why the skill of the referee was extremely important.
“Everyone seems unable to properly face their opponent because they’re all worried about my arm.”
“….”
So they all started avoiding me because they were worried about his arm, and that’s why he called me to spar?
And he taught me in the process.
My sense of gratitude diminished somewhat—or rather, quite a bit.
Namgung Wan suddenly asked.
“Who do you think will win?”
“Yalyu.”
“What?”
The uncle glanced at me, then shrugged his shoulders.
“Well, that’s not bad either.”
I was so taken aback that my voice naturally rose.
“But he’s your son. Can you really say that?”
“That boy needs to experience defeat too.”
“….”
I asked carefully.
“Did you hear why the sparring is happening?”
“I did.”
But at my expression asking if that was alright, Namgung Wan spoke.
“Children grow through fighting.”
It was a clean statement that conveyed his thoughts on this sparring match. It also revealed whose temperament Namgung Ryu-cheong had inherited.
Namgung Wan extended his hand to me, and I grasped it and stood up.
I walked alongside Namgung Wan. The night breeze cooled my clothes, drenched with sweat.
Just before entering the Inn.
“Yeon.”
“Yes. What is it?”
“What do you think of Ryu-cheong?”
Namgung Wan’s question struck me like a blow.

—————
This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
—————